A/HRC/16/38 assistive technologies which can help persons with disabilities live independently in the community. 17. North-South cooperation has been a particularly common model of international cooperation in the submissions for the present study, covering development cooperation, capacity-building and the sharing of information. Spain, for example, has been assisting Mexico in the area of capacity-building and information sharing. Germany has supported Chile in making the country’s early education system inclusive of children with disabilities and, as a result, approximately 2,200 children with disabilities are now attending regular kindergarten. Similarly, the Czech Republic has promoted inclusive education of children with disabilities in the Republic of Moldova. Cyprus, which has signed but not yet ratified the Convention, has established a database for the assessment of disability through bilateral aid from the European Social Fund. Indonesia has held a dialogue with Sweden on the rights of persons with disabilities. Furthermore, Indonesia, in cooperation with Australia, carried out capacity-building on disability-inclusive gender and development programmes directed at persons with disabilities and people working with them. Jordan signed a joint Memorandum of Understanding with the Higher Council for the Affairs of Persons with Disabilities and with the British Council in order to “enhance the effective participation of persons with disabilities and integrate them into Jordanian society on the basis of equality and equal opportunities”. Pursuant to this Memorandum, a non-official network entitled Opportunity for All was established, consisting of representatives of 101 civil society organizations and governmental bodies concerned with issues of disability21. Austria has made the reintegration of persons with disabilities in society one of its priorities in the cooperation with Serbia. 18. While less prevalent in the submissions to the present study, South–South cooperation is also relevant for assisting countries in the promotion of disability rights, for example through the sharing of experiences between countries with similar histories, experiences or level of development or through regional leaders supporting neighbours to implement the Convention. International cooperation between Mexico and several Latin American States has sought to promote access for persons with disabilities to sports and build capacity of staff in rehabilitation centres22. Brazil has provided bilateral support to Haiti in the area of rehabilitation of persons with disabilities after the earthquake of January 2010. Mauritius has signed a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation on disability issues with India and South Africa, and Cuba has supported Nicaragua in carrying out a national study on the causes of disability in 2009, with the aim of applying public policies for persons with disabilities in a more targeted manner. 19. The Asia-Pacific region’s commitment to South-South cooperation was reaffirmed at the Senior Officials’ Meeting on South-to-South Cooperation on Disability in August 201023. The meeting adopted the Bangkok Statement on South-South-Cooperation on Disability, which includes a recommendation to support the establishment of a new regional decade on disability in the Asia and Pacific region from 2013 to 2022, a recommendation for Governments to ratify and implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with 21 22 23 See submission of the Jordanian National Centre for Human Rights at www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/disability/docs/study/NCHRJordan.pdf. See submission of Mexico at www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/disability/docs/study/Mexico.doc. The Senior Officials’ Meeting was attended by senior Government focal points on disability and business representatives from the region of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and implementers of community-based rehabilitation from 19 countries in Asia and the Pacific participating in the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)/Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD). See www.apcdfoundation.org/?q=content/bangkok-statement-south-south-cooperation-disability. 7